Securing International Finance for Somalia
How do you rebuild an economy after war? In many post-conflict states, often the answer is you don't. Twenty years after civil war, Somalia is going through a period of regeneration led by the private sector, with external debt falling from 64% of GDP in 2018 to less than 6% by the end of 2023. But the economy remained cut off from international finance and aid due to lingering risk perceptions. Our client, a prominent Somali bank, enlisted us to help break this vicious cycle.
Impact
Within six months, we helped our client go from no presence in the international financial community to securing commitments from two leading banks to enter a correspondent banking relationship. These relationships have the power to unlock millions of dollars of finance for Somalia, underpinning its economic recovery and allowing it to re-enter the global stage as a credible participant in international finance.
Approach
We identified that correspondent banks could mitigate and share risks with larger operators, making them the key to unlocking capital flows into Somalia and ensuring our client became the partner of choice for other banks. We ran in-depth stakeholder engagement with our client, their partners, local and regional experts and contacts across the global financial ecosystem to identify the best targets. We then launched a pilot programme in London, delivering a detailed value proposition that explained the market opportunity while reducing perceptions of risk.
